Colors of the Wind
by kazeko-chan
Summary: What if Kimberly did leave Tommy for another man? Five years later, Tommy finds out why. [no aliens] {Chapter 8 posted}
1. What Might Have Been

**Colors of the Wind**

**Title:** Colors of the Wind  
**Author:** kazeko  
**Show:** Power Rangers  
**Rating:** PG13  
**Couples:** Tommy/Kat (past), Kimberly/Steve (OC) (past), Tommy/Kimberly, Jason/Kat  
**Multipart:** yes  
**Series: **no  
**Chapters:** ?  
**Time:** about five years after MMPR 3 "I'm Dreaming of a White Ranger"; also, Kim wasn't involved in that Turbo Movie thing  
**Summary:** yet another random take on The Letter, this one without other planets  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own these people; you should know that by now, 'cause if I did, Kimberly would never have left and there would be no Letter and Tommy woulda' married the girl. So there.

* * *

Chapter 1: What Might Have Been

* * *

A lone crane soared across the empty plain of the Australian outback, her white feathers tinted a pale rose, a color not often seen in the natural world. A pale peregrine falcon, a coastal species in winter morph, flew around her, faster but not more agile or delicate. A great golden eagle joined them, saucy and powerful, crying her joy at being free at last. The three birds slowly faded as the dawning sun finally rose, warming the ancient land, stealing the life from the night-born star birds. The falcon faded first, his scream of regret echoing across the plains, the eagle moving close to the crane, fear coloring her movements. She followed the smaller bird into non-existence, the crane hanging on for just a little longer before she released her rose to the sky and the new dawn.

A lone woman, knees pulled to her chin, her petite body that of a gymnast, her brown eyes sad, long chestnut hair waving in the wind, watched in silence. "I didn't know there were cranes in Australia."

"There is one," her companion smiled, reaching out to touch the woman's shoulder. "But she does not belong here."

"I don't belong anywhere," she whispered. "That crane once flew with the falcon, once loved that bird, but she has flown far and learned much. There is no going back."

"What about the eagle? Does she not deserve to see the country of her birth? She wasn't born here and on some level she knows it."

"I can't leave. I have family here."

"No, you don't." The visitor, his shirt a dusty red, pointed at the lone gravestone sitting under the large tree that served as the only landmark on the flat plain. "He is dead."

"Shouldn't I be more upset? I mean, I cried, but it seems like I would have grieved the same for Rob or one of my other friends. He was my husband, but it doesn't seem like it sometimes."

"Because he was not your soulmate. Your soulmate is thousands of miles away on a coast that you once called home. You should go back, you should see him."

"I can't."

"Then go see your friends. I'm arranging for a reunion for everyone who was once a Power Ranger. You should come and be part of the party. They all want to know what happened to you. I'm sure they'd like to know about her."

"I'll think about it." The gymnast stood up and smiled. "I think I'm dreaming, but thanks for the advice, Jason. I really miss you."

"I know. Don't let the roots you forged here keep you from flying home, okay? Fly free, little crane."

"Okay." The dream faded as the woman slowly opened her eyes. Slipping out of her empty bed, she padded to the window and stared out across the land she had once thought barren and now called home. That gravestone stared at her across the ground covered in tough grasses, its blank face mocking her. She had not loved her husband as she should. He deserved her love and not just her close friendship. She shared his bed for five years but she could never find it in herself to say 'I love you', and it bothered her. There was no question in her mind that he had loved her, but it wasn't the same as her first boyfriend.

"That was a long time ago," she whispered to the uncaring morning. "We're both very different people now, no matter what Jason says."

"Mommy?"

The woman turned and smiled as her little daughter, a girl not yet five years old, her chestnut hair the same shade as her mother's and her brown eyes thoughtful. "Yes, Shana?"

"Are we leaving soon?"

The mother smiled at her daughter's perception. Shana had a way of knowing things, a trait she had only previously attributed to former Power Rangers. "I guess we are," she whispered. "There doesn't seem to be anything left for me here . . ."

"Good, I want to see America. You told me about it and it sounds pretty."

"It is pretty," her mother agreed, reaching for the phone as she checked the time. Dialing a familiar number, she waited for an answer. "Rob? You awake? . . . Yeah, mate, whatever . . . Look I need you to find me a flight from Sydney to Angel Grove, California as soon as possible. Can you do it? . . . You remember Steve's cousin? . . . Yeah, well I have it on good authority that she will be there by the end of the week. I'd kind of like to meet her and all . . . Sure, thanks. And a hotel, if you can. I won't have a chance to call her before I leave . . . Yeah, come over later today and help us pack. Can you drive us to the airport, too? . . . Fabulous. 'K, see ya' then! Thanks, Rob." She hung up the phone and smiled at her daughter. "Looks like we're going to Angel Grove, sweetie."

"Good. They'll want to see us."

"I hope so."

* * *

She finished placing the last of her jewelry in the box, pausing when she found a small pink jewelry box that she didn't remember. Confused, she opened it and found a pale rose quartz carved into the shape of a delicate crane, hung from a silver chain with tiny diamond eyes. She slipped it over her head, wondering if the spirit in her dream left it for her. She had found strange things before.

Shana reached up and tugged on her mother's skirt, smiling. "All packed. Ready to go home now."

"Okay, dear. Where did you get that?" Ann pointed to the tiny eagle charm hanging from a golden chain around Shana's neck.

"Spirit left it for me."

* * *

"Ann? Shana? I'm here," a deep voice called from the front door. The little girl squealed and ran to meet her "Uncle Rob", Ann's late husband's best friend, Robert Sutherland, who smiled as he sauntered into the house and gathered the petite woman's child into his arms. "Hey, little Eagle. This place won't be the same without you, Ann girl. How will we contact you in the States?"

"I don't imagine you will, Rob. You and Lynn take care and I will try to call when I can. I can't promise much, though." The woman smiled as she gathered her bags, following Rob to his truck as Shana squirmed free and gathered her stuff. Rob loaded her bags as she stared at the crane on her necklace. "I will miss you guys tremendously, but I can't live here alone."

"This town won't be the same without you Hilliards."

"I'm not really a Hilliard, Rob. Steve was that. I'm just one lost California girl who can't figure out where she really belongs. Wish me luck."

"The best, girl. I hate to see you go . . . but I love to watch you leave." Robert winked, and Ann laughed.

"Enough of that, Sutherland! I'm a married woman!" She paused as she gathered the last few things, staring at the rings on her finger before slipping them off and placing them in a small black box in her small carry-on bag. "Well, not anymore. Let's go, Shana, shall we?"

* * *

"It's a reunion. Ever heard of it?"

"Ha, ha. Very funny," the only White Ranger replied sarcastically. "Why now, all of a sudden? Couldn't the Mayor wait until ten years after the first sighting to celebrate the Power Rangers? It seems silly to only wait seven years."

"Actually, it was my suggestion," Jason admitted. The first Red Ranger smiled as he thought back to those early days, that first battle, the slow warming of the town to a group of spandex-covered heroes. "He and I were talking about how the Rangers have saved us—and Ernie added his bit, too—and he pointed out that it's been almost two years since the last Power Rangers fought and defeated evil forces threatening our planet. He feels that we can't wait until evil attacks again to celebrate our heroes." Jason grinned as he glanced at Rocky, who was silently consuming the last of his food in Tommy's kitchen. "Besides, September is a slow month for tourism, and we need an economy boost."

"You're kidding!"

"It was Ernie's idea. So we—Rocky and I—offered the dojo for the party, since we have more parking space here than there is at the Juice Bar or anywhere else for that matter. That way we can make sure that we are properly honored."

Rocky poked his food with his fork, eyeing it with a modicum of distaste, but nothing could stave off his infamous appetite for long. "Who do you think is coming?"

"Well, Kat's back in town, and so are Trini, Zack, Billy, Adam, and Tanya. Even Aisha came. With the three of us, that's all of the original, pre-Turbo Power Rangers." Tommy snapped his mouth shut, knowing the one person he was neglecting. Rocky glanced up, deciding not to comment, but Jason didn't hesitate.

"It's almost like she vanished off the face of the Earth. Kimberly Ann Hart simply does not exist anymore. I tried to talk to her family, I tried to talk to the coach in Florida, but no one has seen her since that April more than five years ago." Jason shook his head and looked out the window of the apartment the three ex-Red Rangers shared above their dojo and sighed. "I wish I knew what happened. Even if she died, it would be better than this."

Tommy walked over to the bookcase and opened a small wooden box, pulling out an old and very creased letter. "Maybe I should have gone to Miami. There must have been something very wrong for Kimberly to have sent me this."

"It took you five years to realize that she was hurting?" Rocky snorted and tossed the last of his meal into the trash, wandering to the balcony. "The rest of us knew it all along."

"Why didn't you say something?"

"It wasn't our place. She was your girlfriend and you let her get away. If she ever comes back, you had better figure out what you did and how you can fix it."

Tommy replaced the letter and slipped into his shoes, heading for the door. "Okay, I'll go to the reunion. Right now I'm going for a walk and I'll be back eventually."

* * *

Tommy sighed as he wandered down the street, hands shoved deep into his pockets. After he was officially released from his duties as a Power Ranger, Tommy had returned to white shirts, aching for the good times when he was the White Ranger. He missed Kimberly and he missed feeling the power of the Falcon screaming through his body, so he wore white. Rocky had returned to red, and Jason had never really given it up.

He wandered all the way to the airport, stopping and glancing across the street as a small group of people from the latest flight exited the small building and scattered to the taxis waiting patiently. His dark brown eyes were riveted on one petite brunette, a small girl in her arms, mind flying to the old days and a certain gymnast he loved so much. He smiled at the pair, wondering if he and Kimberly would have had a child one day, a little girl like that one. Suddenly curious, Tommy moved closer to the building, watching the young mother as the cab driver loaded her belongings into the back of his vehicle and the woman climbed into the back. He lost sight as the car sped away, but there was only one decent hotel down that road, and he made a mental note to wander over there soon and see who that interesting woman was. Her long chestnut hair reminded him of a girl he knew years ago, the girl he loved and never could forget.

"Tommy?"

He whirled around at the call, smiling as a familiar blonde Australian dashed to the side of the Native American who had been the leader of the Power Rangers for years, embracing him joyfully. "Kat! I was hoping to see you again. How are you doing?"

The second Pink Ranger and his former girlfriend grinned and shrugged as she and Tommy walked down the street, the only sound for a few minutes the soft murmur of their clothing. "I just got news from my aunt that my cousin Steve died last month."

"Oh, Kat, I'm so sorry."

Kat smiled, accepting her friend's sympathy. "It's okay. I didn't know him that well; only a few meetings when we were younger. He was a gymnast and medaled in the Pan-Global American Team—since Australia doesn't have one—and in the Summer and Winter Olympics for the Australian Team. Then he moved back to Queensland with his wife and daughter and lived there until he died from some sort of poisonous bite or something. My aunt didn't give me that many details. I hear that he left everything to his wife. My friend Rob Sutherland said that she took her daughter and headed for America at least until the details of the will are settled by the lawyers. You'd think I would have met my cousin-in-law and her daughter at least once."

"Did your friend say where in America she was headed?"

"Not really. I didn't speak to him for very long. I think my aunt mentioned that Steve's wife was a California girl, probably from the coast. We can't call Rob now, but he did tell me the flight she would be on. We can look it up, if you'd like. It might be a town near here and we could go meet my cousin and her daughter."

"Then let's head for the dojo and trace the flight."

* * *

TBC


	2. Cousins by Marriage

**Colors of the Wind**

**Title:** Colors of the Wind  
**Author:** kazeko  
**Show:** Power Rangers  
**Rating:** PG13  
**Couples:** Tommy/Kat (past), Kimberly/Steve (OC) (past), Tommy/Kimberly, Jason/Kat  
**Multipart:** yes  
**Series: **no  
**Chapters:** ?  
**Time:** about five years after MMPR 3 "I'm Dreaming of a White Ranger"; also, Kim wasn't involved in that Turbo Movie thing  
**Summary:** yet another random take on The Letter, this one without other planets  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own these people; you should know that by now, 'cause if I did, Kimberly would never have left and there would be no Letter and Tommy woulda' married the girl. So there.

* * *

Chapter 2: Cousins by Marriage

* * *

"Hey, Kat! How are you?"

Kat smiled at the first Red Ranger as Jason leaned up and kissed her before returning to the plans for the big reunion. "Better than that chili, it looks like, Rocky."

The second Red Ranger and second Blue Ranger glanced at the bowl he had almost forgotten, his second lunch, wrinkling his nose. "The beans aren't so good. Whatcha' been up to in London?"

"Not much. I told Tommy that I kind of came looking for the widow of my late cousin Steve, who might be from around here." Kat dug through her purse and frowned at the letter she found. "Here's the plane, Tommy. Aunt Mary only told me a few things. She said that Ann was from southern California . . ." Kat trailed off, glancing up. "Did you guys know a gymnast named Ann from around here? She was in the Pan Globals and Winter Olympics, but Aunt Mary said that she was in her third trimester with Steve's daughter during the Summer Olympics."

"She wasn't from around here," Tommy piped up from the corner, scanning the information on the computer screen as he searched for the flight. "Here's a list of the contestants from the Pan Globals. There isn't an Ann."

"Hmm. That's strange. Is there anyone from California that matches up for the Globals and the Olympics?"

"There's only one woman who was in the Globals and Winter Olympics but not Summer Olympics, and her name wasn't Ann."

"Who was it?"

"Kimberly." Tommy froze, whirling around in his seat, brown eyes wide. "Kimberly _Ann_ Hart. You don't think . . ."

"Why not? She fits Aunt Mary's description and as far as we know she just vanished; changing her name would have hidden her from us. But what would make her change her name?"

"She didn't want us to find her," Tommy whispered, his mind flying to the mother and child he had seen at the airport. Could it be . . . ? Tommy returned to tracing the plane. "The plane your friend said Ann and her daughter took landed here, only an hour or so ago. Kat, I think I saw this Ann person and her daughter."

"Do you know where she went?"

Tommy nodded and scribbled down the address, handing the paper to Kat. "You had better go; she's your cousin." He didn't have to add that if she was Kimberly, she might not speak to him.

"I'll stop by Tanya's and see if Trini or Aisha wants to come meet my cousin. Can I take your jeep, Tommy?"

"Yeah, sure." He tossed her the keys, eyes worried. "Kat, make sure your cousin knows that she's welcome here in Angel Grove."

"I will."

* * *

"Ann Hilliard? Let me see." The man behind the counter at the hotel ran his finger down the list of guests, eyeing the four women standing in front of him. One was a tall blonde with blue eyes and an Australian accent, her last name the same as the woman she was looking for. One of her companions was a small Asian woman with long hair and the other two were African, a strong bond of friendship tying the four together. "Here she is. And you say she's your cousin?"

"She married my cousin, but Steve died a month ago and I never got a chance to meet her or their daughter. I just want her to know that she's welcome in Angel Grove and that we want to be her friends. I remember how difficult it was for me to make friends when I first got here." _Though most of that was because I tried to kill the Pink Ranger_, Kat added silently.

"She's in 409, but you'll have to knock and see if she'll let you in. Even for a cousin I cannot disturb her privacy."

"I understand. Thank you."

* * *

Aisha and Trini stepped forward and knocked on the door, hoping that the woman on the other side was their friend from so long ago. The first and second Yellow Rangers vividly remembered the bright, energetic captain of the cheerleading team and amazing gymnast, and they hoped that the petite brunette had not changed beyond recognition. Tanya sensed the energy and excitement filling her two predecessors and her friend, wondering what kind of a woman Kimberly was to make Kat, Aisha, and Trini so excited to finally find her. She had always known that it took a certain type of person to be a Power Ranger, but the way everyone who met her described her, Tanya could see that Kimberly had something special, even for an ex-Ranger. The door opened a crack, a little girl peeking out, tiny golden eagle on a chain around her neck. "Hello?"

"Hi. Is your mother here?"

The girl nodded. "She's in the bathroom brushing her hair."

Kat took over, crouching down to smile at the child. "Hi. I'm Kat, your father's cousin. Can we come in and wait for your mother?"

"You're my cousin? I never met you."

"I've been in London. I'd really like to meet you now."

The girl nodded and pulled the door open. "I guess that's alright. Mommy never said that family was strangers." The four women exchanged a shocked glance as they took their seats, all eyes fastened on the child. Her long mahogany hair, deep brown eyes, and tiny build could only belong to Kimberly's child, but there was something about her that reminded them of Tommy. Some air of authority, perhaps. That was impossible, of course, but they wondered.

"Who was it, Shana . . ." The voice reached the four women seconds before the owner emerged from the bathroom, eyes searching for her child, freezing in shock at the scene before her. Kat, Tanya, Aisha, and Trini were on their feet in a second, eyes wide. The woman standing before them had longer chestnut hair and an air of maturity she had not possessed at seventeen, but there was no mistaking her identity.

"Kimberly," Trini breathed, recognizing her long-time best friend in the woman before her. "Oh God, it is you."

"Trini?" Her soft voice was barely a squeak, her legs trembling as they gave out and deposited the petite brunette in the nearest chair. "Oh my . . . Aisha, Kat, Tanya. What are you all doing here?"

"We came to see you, of course," Aisha whispered as the four women fell forward and embraced their friend. Even Tanya joined in, though she only knew Kimberly through her friends' accounts. From all that Tommy had mentioned, she felt like she and the littlest Power Ranger had been friends for years. "Why didn't you call?"

"I left so quickly . . ."

"Why didn't you tell me that you married my cousin Steve?"

Kimberly stood up and joined her daughter on the small couch, pulling the girl into her arms. "I wasn't sure if you'd welcome me into your family," she whispered. "And . . . I wasn't sure I could face you."

"Face me? After . . . oh." The Letter and all of the events surrounding the infamous break-up came crashing down on the four visitors, birthing a new silence. "Kimberly, about Tommy . . ."

She waved her hand. "It doesn't matter. I only came for that stupid reunion thing and I heard about a job here. I probably won't take it, with so many memories . . . things I don't want to remember." She pulled her daughter closer, and Kat wondered what the girl represented to her mother. She was more than just the child of a late husband.

Shana squirmed loose and walked over to the four women, staring up at Kat. "Mommy, is she really my cousin?"

"Yes, baby, she is. Mine, too, actually. Kat, meet Shana Rose Hilliard, my daughter with Steve." Shana glanced at her mother strangely at the comment, as if there was something wrong with her wording, but she reached out her hand, anyway.

"Hello."

Kat smiled and shook the proffered hand. "Hello. How old are you, Shana?"

"Five, almost. What about you?"

"Twenty-three, same as your mother. Who didn't tell us that she was pregnant during the Pan-Globals." All eyes turned back to Kimberly, and she sighed, waiting for the questions and accusations. "Is Steve the man you left Tommy for? What happened, Kim; did you get pregnant from some one-night stand and dump Tommy so he wouldn't find out that you cheated on him?"

"Something like that," she whispered.

"Why would you do that?" Aisha shook her head. "I don't understand, Kimberly. You and Tommy were inseparable, the perfect couple. You were alright at Christmas; what happened? What did he do to you?"

"He didn't do anything another man wouldn't have done," she whispered. "Don't blame him for any of this, okay? I did what I had to five years ago and I can live with my choices. I'm sure he's over me by now."

"Kimberly—"

"Look, I don't want to talk about this." Kimberly stood up and pulled her daughter to her side, glaring at the four ex-Rangers. "I don't want to see any of you if you're only going to talk about what happened five years ago. The woman who loved Tommy and would do anything for him, Kimberly Hart, died five years ago. My name is Ann Hilliard, and I just lost my husband a month ago. My daughter needs her supper and I need you to go."

"Kimberly, please—"

"Aisha! My name is Ann. Goodbye." She stood there, glaring, until Tanya, Trini, and Aisha walked out the door. Kat hesitated for a moment before following the three Yellow Rangers.

"You know, Shana doesn't really look like Steve. She looks a lot more like someone from Kimberly's past." She closed the door, shaking her head. "We need to go tell the guys and I need to call Rob."

Kimberly stared at the closed door as she gathered her old emotions and buried them once more. Ann sighed and led her daughter into the small dining area, handing her a simple sandwich and a glass of milk. "Don't spill it," she warned.

"I won't. Mommy, why did you send them away? I liked them."

"Trust me, we'll be much better off if we can last without seeing any of Kimberly's friends. They'll just cause trouble."

"I thought you said this place used to be your home. Don't you trust your friends?"

Ann chuckled and kissed Shana's forehead. "You think too much. Go eat, child."

* * *

TBC


	3. Forever Rangers

**Colors of the Wind**

**Title:** Colors of the Wind  
**Author:** kazeko  
**Show:** Power Rangers  
**Rating:** PG13  
**Couples:** Tommy/Kat (past), Kimberly/Steve (OC) (past), Tommy/Kimberly, Jason/Kat  
**Multipart:** yes  
**Series: **no  
**Chapters:** ?  
**Time:** about five years after MMPR 3 "I'm Dreaming of a White Ranger"; also, Kim wasn't involved in that Turbo Movie thing  
**Summary:** yet another random take on The Letter, this one without other planets  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own these people; you should know that by now, 'cause if I did, Kimberly would never have left and there would be no Letter and Tommy woulda' married the girl. So there.

**Author's Note:** Okay, for anyone that has been reading the reviews, the review of ch1 by "kazekochan" was actually by one of my friends that I let use my computer and I guess I was still logged onto ffnet. My friend has since been read the riot act about flame wars and about writing reviews in foreign language if you can't speak it well enough (kara/made and hanashi!). I'm sorry for that, and here's the REAL answer to the ellipsis person: I do enjoy and appreciate constructive criticism, though the "cliché" thing was unwarranted. I think that every author who writes a Kim/Tommy fic puts their own spin on the relationship and no two stories are the same. However, the point about only using old-school characters is true. I never saw anything past early Zeo and it would be dumb to write about what I have never seen. I don't like any other Kim- or Tommy- pairing and I believe they belong together. They were the only real couple in twelve years that lasted more than 1 or 2 episodes, so it was part of the show. Get used to it. Also, if you want to rob a bank, go ahead. I'll be at your trial laughing. Also, there are ways to search for ANY couple you want, especially if you don't like the common ones. If you like Justin and Tanya, search for it but don't come to my story (which has Tommy and Kimberly listed as the two characters) and complain. Thanks to noctorro for the email that alerted me to the badly-written review by my friend.

For every one else, thanks for the massive amounts of reviews! Yes, the horses seem weird but I like horses, and there need to be more animals in Angel Grove. Also, the reunion thing is not quite as weird as it seems and I've got to choose a later Ranger to help out . . . But the first two chapters seemed a little weak to me and I have revised both. If anyone has any suggestions (not flames, but constructive criticism) please review or email me. Also, I don't know much about paramedics that respond to fires, so any experts would be welcome to say something about this chapter. How burned would you get in a fire?

Also, the revisions will do a better job of introducing the characters for the people who have, unfortunately, not seen the original Power Rangers. Also, Kimberly will _eventually_ tell what really happened and this fic is going to be a lot shorter than some of my others. And choosing Kat's cousin was not purely chance since I liked her (as Tommy's friend, not girlfriend) and I want to live in Australia one day, so living vicariously through Kimberly and Shana.

I'm sorry that was so long, but on to the chapter!!

* * *

Chapter 3: Forever Rangers

* * *

"Well?" Billy, Tommy, Rocky, Adam, Zack, and Jason waited anxiously as the four women filed back into the apartment above the dojo, heads hung. They let Kat speak since she was technically Ann's cousin.

"It's Kimberly, but she's changed."

"What do you mean? Is she hurt?"

"No, Tommy, but she's not the same girl we saw at Christmas. She claims that she married my cousin Steve when he got her pregnant about the same time she wrote that Letter. She really _did_ find someone else." Tommy hung his head, falling onto the couch beside Jason. "Tommy, listen. The little girl doesn't look like my cousin."

Tommy looked up. "What do you mean?"

"Steve looked quite a bit like me, but that girl looks like Kimberly and . . . and you. She looks a lot like you."

"That's what it was," Aisha murmured. "It looked like Shana is about half Native American. That doesn't make a lot of sense, unless there's aboriginal Australian in your family, Kat."

"There's not . . . not that I know of . . ."

"Wait, Shana? Kimberly and I talked about naming our first child Shana. But she's not mine. She couldn't be . . ."

"What is it, Bro?" Tommy's eyes had widened considerably, his tanned skin paling as he fell backwards. The former White Ranger covered his face with his hands and shook his head. "Tommy, what's wrong?"

"But that still doesn't make any sense. Why would she leave me?" Tommy leapt out of his seat and dashed through the door before anyone could move, heading for his horse and the hotel. Jason and Billy followed him in an instant, knowing that he would never get Kimberly to talk to him in that mood.

* * *

"Kimberly! Talk to me, please."

Ann sighed as she finished checking her email. Glancing into the bedroom to make sure that Shana was properly occupied, the widow walked to the door and opened it a crack, raising an eyebrow at the man standing on the other side. "Can I help you?"

"Kimberly, it's me, Tommy. Tommy Oliver."

Ann raised an eyebrow. "My name is Ann and I don't know any Tommy. Perhaps you have the wrong room?"

"Kimberly?"

"Ann," the woman corrected firmly. "Look, I have things to do and you're disturbing my daughter. Please go away." She closed the door, locking it in case the man tried to break in, waiting to see if he would leave.

Outside, Tommy stared at the closed door, his mind reeling. What? Kimberly didn't recognize him? But they dated for two years and if what Kat said was true . . .

"Tommy?" Jason's hand landed on his shoulder as he and Billy gently led the ex-Ranger away. The first Blue Ranger had been very quiet and somber since his return from Aquitar, but he seemed a little more like his old self as he and his former leader led Tommy away from Ann's room. "Look, you're not going to get anything if you burst in on her like this. Give her a few days to get used to Angel Grove again then Billy or I will try to talk to her."

Tommy sighed and nodded, sensing the wisdom in his friend's words. "Okay. But make it soon, okay? No mother needs to be alone."

* * *

Tommy awoke with a start as a siren pierced the gentle peace of an Angel Grove night. He grabbed his pants and shirt, slipping into his shoes as he headed into the living room where Jason and Rocky were pulling on their own shirts. "What happened?"

"There's a fire downtown. We're going to see if there's anything we can do. Your jeep has been elected to transport us, so you better find your keys." Minutes later, the three ex-Red Rangers were speeding toward the dark smoke they could see rising above the few city lights Angel Grove boasted, pale yellow flames darkening as the fire gained momentum. Tommy parked a few buildings down, the three running up to the engulfed building as he tried to get his bearings. Something seemed very familiar.

They found Billy, Zack, and Adam in short order, Kat, Tanya, Aisha, and Trini waiting not much closer. The ten ex-Rangers gathered at the edge of the police line and watched as the firefighters tried desperately to quell the blaze. Tommy edged closer to the three policemen at the edge, listening to their brief conversation. "No, most of them got out when the alarm went off."

"Most?"

The sergeant nodded sadly. "Some kid was trapped and her mother went back for her after the firemen brought her down. She was hurt, but she twisted away like some world-famous gymnast. It makes me wish for the days of the Power Rangers."

Tommy went cold inside at the woman's words. Mother. He finally spotted the street sign, only just barely staying on his feet as realization hit him. Kimberly and her little girl. This was their hotel. Later he could never remember making a conscious decision, but an instant later he leapt the police tape and dodged the officers as he headed full speed toward the engulfed building. The firefighters shouted for him to stop, but he was too fast and too agile for them, too desperate to reach that hotel.

"TOMMY!!" Kat's cry echoed after him as the former White Ranger vanished into the smoke and flame, but he never slowed. "Where is he going?!"

"Kimberly," Jason realized, falling to his knees. "She must still be trapped in there." He was up an instant later, the other eight Rangers behind him as they dodged around the police tape and headed for the inferno, the sergeant calling for every one to restrain the nine men and women. They avoided the police easily, long years fighting putties and cogs enhancing their reflexes beyond normal human speeds. Adam and Rocky knelt on the ground at the base of the huge oak tree that grew within jumping distance of the hotel, all spotlights and cameras turning to the young heroes. Jason jumped onto the four hands, letting his friends vault him a dozen or more feet into the air to land on a huge branch over head. Zack moved back a little, the first Black Ranger easily spotting the window to room 409 and pointing it out to his former leader.

"That tree could go any second," Kat warned. "How are you going to reach them?"

"That was her room, right? What I need is a branch or a beam of wood." Jason took the piece of wood Rocky passed up from the nearby construction site, easily lifting the heavy beam and passing it across to the one window that had yet to go up in flames. "Can any of you girls walk across that?"

"No! Kim was the gymnast!"

"Then we'll just have to improvise. Girls, get up here; Billy, find a rope. Zack, you stay with Adam and Rocky to catch whoever comes down."

"Right!" They moved with the easy grace of an old team, effortlessly sensing their partners' positions even in the dark, the police sergeant watching the show from afar. She called her officers off, wondering what these kids could do.

* * *

Tommy choked on the smoke pouring from Kimberly's hotel room, covering his mouth with his shirt as he broke through the wood. "Kimberly? Ann? Are you here?" He moved deeper, unable to see, the heat searing him from all angles, until the faint strain of a child crying led him to the bedroom. The door was almost completely engulfed in flames, but he managed to wedge it open and force his way inside. Kimberly huddled in the corner farthest from the door, eyes staring at the flames as they crept ever closer. Her little daughter wept in her arms, hot and scared, knowing that something was very wrong.

Tommy knelt beside the woman, glancing up at the window. He heard the floor outside the hotel room give way, and he knew that there was only one escape. "We need to get the two of you out of here. Can you stand?"

Kimberly shook her head, pointing at her leg. The policeman had mentioned that the woman had been injured, and it was obvious that she had severely twisted her ankle trying to return to her child. She handed the girl to Tommy, tears in her eyes. "Take her to safety."

"I won't leave you."

"You don't have a choice. Please save Shana." Tommy moved to protest, but the girl in his arms started to sob in earnest, her fear reminding the former Ranger why he was there. Gritting his teeth, he stood and headed for the window, shielding the girl as glass exploded inward.

"Tommy?"

"Kat!" Tommy dashed to the window and found himself facing Kat tying a rope to what was left of the landing above Kim's window. He held Shana out and the Aussie took her, passing her to Aisha and Trini as the human chain moved the girl away from the flame. "Kat, how much weight will that rope take?"

"Not much. It's just to keep us from falling from the board. Where's Kim?"

"She's hurt. All of you need to get back to the ground in case this building completely explodes. Take care of Shana, ok?"

"Tommy!"

"Look, if I can't get Kimberly out, I won't leave. I'm ordering you to get back to the ground. All of you." Kat nodded and reluctantly inched back across the board; all of the Rangers knew Tommy's Leader Tone.

Tommy turned back to Kimberly and scooped her into his arms, ignoring the smoke and heat radiating from the door. "What?"

"I'm getting you out of here."

"Tommy, no! Get out, save yourself! I can't let you die for me!"

"I'm not giving you a choice, Kim." Tommy walked to the window and eyed the gulf between him and the empty tree, watching as flame leapt to the nearest twigs. The tree would be aflame very soon. Shifting his grip so he was holding Kimberly with one arm, Tommy turned to the burned and injured woman. "Hold on tight." Grabbing the rope, he carefully put his weight on the slender board.

The ex-Rangers cheered from the ground as Tommy emerged with Kimberly in his arms, Kat holding Shana close. They caught their breath as the board began to bow, too weak to hold Tommy and Kimberly. The brunette screamed as the board splintered and the rope broke free of the building, slamming the pair into the tree. Tommy grunted as his grip loosened, Jason and Billy reaching up to catch an unconscious Kimberly as Rocky, Adam, and Zack helped Tommy to the ground.

That was when the firemen and policemen realized that they should help the men and women. The ambulances finally arrived, and paramedics surrounded the group as Tommy slipped free of his friends' arms, wincing from the burns covering his body and the fierce bruises on his side where he hit the tree. "Give her to me," he whispered, letting Jason reach out to keep him standing as the unconscious brunette was passed to the ex-Ranger. Tommy held Kimberly close, wiping the ash off her face and glancing at her injured leg. "I don't know what I'd do if I had lost you," he whispered. The paramedics reached for the slender woman, pulling back when Tommy glared at them. "You can't have her," he growled.

Jason indicated that he would deal with his friend. "Tommy, you have to let them take Kimberly. She'll die if you don't."

"It was so much easier before," he whispered, laying the slender woman on the stretcher, brushing off the paramedics who tried to get a look at his wounds. Jason pushed Tommy into the ambulance, Kat climbing in after him with Shana. Jason stuck his head out the cab door before the medics closed it, glancing at Billy.

"Keep an eye on them, Billy. You're in charge now."

"You can count on me, Jason." The first Blue Ranger straightened up at the request, all of his old training and strength returning with the request. Watching after the other Rangers was something he could do.

The police sergeant watched the proceedings as she stepped forward and pulled the man in blue out of the crowd. "Billy Cranston? How did he know about that woman trapped in the hotel?"

Billy shrugged. "Tommy always knows when Kimberly's in danger. He hasn't failed her yet and he'll die before he does." The group left, knowing from their Ranger days that it would be prudent to vanish before the reporters arrived, leaving the sergeant, Arissa Sparrow to ponder his words. Kimberly had been in danger before? She must be Kimberly Ann Hart, that girl that left for the Pan-Globals five years earlier. Maybe she kept getting in the way of the monsters that the Power Rangers kept fighting. But the how did Tommy keep saving her? Only the Power Rangers fought those monsters. There was one other possibility . . .

The sergeant caught the arm of one of the medics, one of her closest friends, and pointed at the ambulance as the burned man and woman were loaded up. "Send me the medical information on any of that group you can."

"Even the kid?"

"No, just the adults. But any of those eleven would be good."

"I can easily get the papers on the two who were burned, Arissa, but I can't promise any more than that."

"Anything you can get, Laura, would be great."

Laura shrugged and joined her colleagues as the ambulances sped away. Inside the back of one, Laura fitted an oxygen mask over the unconscious woman's face, forcing air into her smoke-filled and burned lungs. She quickly glanced at the burns, glad that none of them would require major surgery. They would take a while to heal, though.

The man in the back with her coughed, glancing at the blonde woman and the small girl before turning his attention back to the stretcher. "How is she?"

"She'll be fine," Laura assured him, glaring at the oxygen mask in his hands. The young man placed the plastic mask over his mouth as the other medic had ordered him to do, dark eyes begging for an answer. "She seems to be breathing fine and the burns aren't as bad as they could be. It looks like her leg may have been broken by that dive I heard you took, but it might just be a minor fracture, easy to heal." The little girl was awake and breathing fine; one of Laura's colleagues had checked the girl out but she seemed to be in better condition than her mother. "How did you know she was in trouble?"

"I always know," the man whispered, pulling his mask away for a moment. He reached over to brush a stray strand of hair out of the young woman's face. "I won't fail her."

The blonde reached over and rested a hand on the man's arm. "Don't worry, Tommy," she consoled, her Australian accent heavy; "Kimberly's a fighter. She'll be alright. She hasn't given in yet." She checked the little girl in her arms and smiled. "Shana's asleep. She doesn't seem to have been hurt at all."

"Kimberly protected her." Tommy leaned back against the side of the ambulance, his eyes never leaving Kimberly's face. "You guys didn't have to come, Kat."

"We'll always be there for you guys. You should know that by now. Even after all this time, we're still a team."

Laura considered their words as the ambulance sped toward the hospital.

* * *

TBC


	4. Healing Miracle

**Colors of the Wind**

**Title:** Colors of the Wind  
**Author:** kazeko  
**Show:** Power Rangers  
**Rating:** PG13  
**Couples:** Tommy/Kat (past), Kimberly/Steve (OC) (past), Tommy/Kimberly, Jason/Kat  
**Multipart:** yes  
**Series: **no  
**Chapters:** ?  
**Time:** about five years after MMPR 3 "I'm Dreaming of a White Ranger"; also, Kim wasn't involved in that Turbo Movie thing  
**Summary:** yet another random take on The Letter, this one without other planets  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own these people; you should know that by now, 'cause if I did, Kimberly would never have left and there would be no Letter and Tommy woulda' married the girl. So there.

**Author's Note:** Okay, I've decided that this Ranger Reunion is going to include a cameo appearance by all of the Rangers MMPR, PRZ, PRT, and PRiS, so if anyone knows a lot about the late Turbo and Space teams, please send me an email and tell me who the characters are; otherwise, I'll be getting my info from crap sources and upsetting a lot of PRT/PRiS fans. Thank you for continuing to read my fics and please help me. I really don't know about these people and their relationships.

* * *

Chapter 4: Healing Miracle

* * *

Kimberly slowly opened her eyes, groaning as a sharp pain shot through her body, wincing away from the bright light outside. She felt a warm hand on her forehead pulling her pain away, and she sighed gratefully. Opening her eyes, she smiled at her companion. "Good morning, Tommy." 

"Hi. So I hear you ran back into a burning building to save your daughter." Tommy smiled as he helped Kimberly sit up, joining the petite brunette on her bed. "You can take those bandages off."

"Huh? Oh." Kimberly's fingers found the gauze on her face, carefully removing them and feeling the skin underneath. "How did I heal so fast? I know I was more burned than this. My hands are fine, too. Wow. Is this part of . . . our past?"

Tommy nodded, recognizing the need for secrecy, no matter that they seemed to be alone. "I think so. We were both burned up pretty bad, and I had a pretty bruised leg, but that is all healed now."

"What about Shana?"

"She wasn't hurt except for a little smoke," Tommy assured the mother. "She's a beautiful little girl, Kimberly. She looks just like you." He took her hands; dark brown eyes serious. "I hope that her father treated you right."

"He always did," Kimberly whispered, reaching up to wipe away her tears. "Um, Tommy, about the letter . . . it was Steve, Kat's cousin on her father's side. When he found out that I was pregnant in March, he offered to marry me and take me back to Australia with him after the Pan-Globals. We went to the Winter Olympics, but I couldn't go to the Summer Games."

"I hear you got gold in the Pan-Globals and the Winter Olympics. Congratulations. Have you done any gymnastics since then?"

Kimberly shook her head. "Not really. I practice a little and I've been teaching Shana, but I never really got into teaching gymnastics. I have a license and all, but I never really used it."

"I thought that was your dream, though."

"It was, once," she whispered. "Long ago, I had a lot of dreams. Now . . . have you achieved all of your goals, Tommy? Are you finished doing what you wanted to do with your life?"

"No, of course not. Rocky, Jason, and I bought that dojo we wanted but we're only just now showing some good profits. We have some good students and their parents send their children to learn discipline and honor, even if they aren't really all that interested in the martial arts. I still want to get married, have a family, own my own house, maybe go and spend some time with my brother David on the reservation and learn more about my past and my people. I still have a lot to do."

"I don't," she whispered. "I'm not sure if I ever want to teach, but I've done everything else. I have my gold medals, I had my time in the spotlight. I got married, I had a child, I visited foreign countries . . . there's nothing left for me, Tommy. I had a dream a few nights ago where Jason came to me and said that he was arranging a reunion of the Power Rangers and that I would be welcome here in Angel Grove. I wasn't going to come, but then I looked out at Steve's grave and realized that I had nothing left in Australia. That house, that land, belonged to Steve, and Shana and I needed to leave. Angel Grove seemed as good a place as any to go, and as soon as all the details of the will are worked out, I'll rent the land to Rob so he can keep his livestock there and I can keep living off Steve's home."

"Will you stay here?"

"I might. I've missed California, but I was able to bury my loneliness for five years."

"Is that why you created your Ann persona?"

"Yeah. Ann Hilliard was Steve's wife, the nice young woman he brought home from the Pan-Global Games and the mother of his child. She was a housewife—I think we're called "home-makers" now—and volunteered in the community. She had a gorgeous garden and a sweet little girl and worked with rehabilitating injured animals in the area. But when I came here, she vanished. I tried to bring her back when you came to my hotel room, but there are so many memories here that I couldn't find her. With the fire . . . I never got to thank you, Tommy, for saving my daughter. She's all that I have."

"I'd do anything for you, Kimberly, and I hope you know that."

"I do, Tommy. I really do. Where . . . where is Shana?"

"The nurse told me earlier that Shana was checked out and she was perfectly fine. She found that a little strange, and so did I, but she was kept in a room in the children's ward overnight for observation. Maybe she inherited some of your immunities from our past."

"I hope not. I wanted her to be normal, Tommy. I didn't want her to face the danger we faced. I hoped we could escape all of this strangeness in Australia, and it worked. She has lived a happy, healthy life without monsters and Rita and Zedd . . . I didn't want her to go through what I went through, Tommy."

"You did wonderfully, Kimberly, much better than you give yourself credit for. Shana is a beautiful little girl. She looks just like her mother."

"She looks like her father," Kimberly murmured, turning away from her former boyfriend. "When are they going to let us out? I . . . I really want to see the other guys. I'm not sure if they'll still want to see me, but . . ."

Tommy smiled. "They want to see you, Kimberly. I know I am glad that you're back. If they didn't want to see you, would all of them have come to your aid?"

Kimberly smiled, pausing as her memories of the fire and the subsequent rescue returned to her. "How did you know, Tommy? You weren't there when I ran back in and the policemen had no idea who I was when I broke free."

"I just knew." Any further conversation was stilled by a nurse entering the room, clipboard in hand. Kimberly had no idea who she was, but Tommy recognized the mousy woman as Laura, the nurse from the ambulance the previous night. The woman wasn't much taller than Kimberly, her frame almost as petite, the fire in her ice blue eyes just as strong. Her light eyes contrasted sharply with her black hair, pulled into a bun to be out of her way.

"Well, let's see how my newest patients are doing." She stopped dead at the sight that greeted her eyes. She vividly remembered the vicious burns covering the young woman, but Ann Hilliard's face and arms were perfectly healed, no indication that they had ever been injured. Tommy Oliver was also bandage-free. What amazed the young nurse the most was their hair. After such an ordeal, their hair had been singed, dry, and fairly brittle. But now their hair was movie-star perfect, shiny and silky, free even of soot. It was completely impossible, and Laura jotted down all of her observations for Arissa's use. She made a private wager that Oliver's bruised leg was perfectly fine and Hilliard's fractured right leg was healed, no scar tissue on the bone or anything. "Um, I need to examine the two of you after last night's ordeal."

"Of course." Tommy returned to his own bed as Laura closed the curtain, Kat Hilliard's arguments to keep the pair in the same room ringing in her head. Tommy had been a little delirious, but his body fought all sedatives and he refused to be put in a separate room. Laura's perfunctory examination of Ann Hilliard proved her theory correct, and she noted on the log that there was no reason to keep the woman any longer unless the doctor argued against her release. Oliver also proved to be in perfect health, both even breathing perfectly well. Shaking her head, Laura left the pair and promised to send some food.

"I just realized something, Tommy."

"What?"

"Won't they find it strange how quickly we healed? I never thought about it . . . before, but our past changed us more than any of us could guess, even Billy. You don't think that someone might figure it out?"

"Don't worry, Beautiful," Tommy smiled, never noticing that he had automatically called Kimberly by his old nickname for his girlfriend. "A person would have to suspect the truth before they began to investigate it, and no one has any idea."

"What about his reunion of Jason's? There will be more than—what, fifteen?—people that share our past right here in Angel Grove. It might get a little suspicious."

"Don't fret, Kimberly. Jason's smart; he'll keep our secret. He was one of you originals; you all remember that oath better than the rest of us."

"You're telling me. Sometimes I wonder what my life would have been like if It never happened." Kimberly shook her head, banishing the past, a smile on her lips. "Never mind. By the way, my hotel kind of burned to the ground so I don't really have any where to stay. Actually, except for the singed clothes I was wearing yesterday, I don't own anything in this hemisphere. Do you know somewhere I can stay?"

"Jason, Rocky, and I each have our own apartment above the dojo with a common living area and kitchen; I'm sure I can crash on Jase's couch and let you and Shana have my room. Or we can ask one of the girls, if you would be more comfortable with them."

Tommy's eagerness amused the mother, and she reached up to caress his cheek without thinking about it. "Thank you, Tommy. Thank you for still caring."

"I never stopped."

* * *

"Riss, you don't understand. They have the most amazing healing ability . . . I've never seen it before! It reminds me of some strange reports I've read previously." 

"Like?"

Laura shrugged, sipping her tea. "A couple of years ago, Rocky DeSantos came in with a neck injury from some martial arts move he hadn't quite mastered or something like that. I'm not sure why, but his doctor didn't report anything unusual about his recovery. I read the report and remember being shocked that DeSantos had even survived, let alone made a full recovery. Injuries like his have killed and paralyzed other people; he was the first I ever read about recovering. Seeing him now you would never guess that he was hurt."

"Wasn't DeSantos one of the men that helped save Hilliard?"

Laura nodded. "There are others. Every one of the eleven men and women that was at that fire has a file in the hospital and I glanced at each of them. None of them have given blood, but we have some blood samples from the ones who have been more seriously injured which I can't get to without some effort. But, without fail, all of them were released from the hospital early than expected, no matter why they were there."

"How strange is that, Laura?"

"If they were all complete strangers in different states or even just different cities, I would say that nothing is wrong. However, these eleven—as you saw very clearly last night and as I saw on the late-night news—are very close friends and will instantly go to each other's aid no matter the situation. I don't know very much about Tanya Sloan or Katherine Hilliard, but Ann Hilliard, Scott, Kwan, Taylor, and Cranston are from Angel Grove originally. Oliver, Park, Campbell, Sloan, Katherine Hilliard, and DeSantos moved here more recently, all since entering High School. From what I can remember and determine from their other friends, the first five were a 'group' since they were little, and the others were kind of absorbed when they entered Angel Grove."

"And they all have this unique healing ability?"

"Yes."

"Maybe I should keep an eye on them for a while. Do you know where they live?"

"Yes. Is there anything else, Riss?"

Arissa stood up from the table in the small coffee house, kissing Laura on the cheek as she straightened her jacket and prepared to return to her job. "Unless you can get a glance at those blood samples, not really. Perhaps if you tell your superior what you told me, she might let you examine them . . . in the name of scientific advancement, I suppose. Other than that, I should be home early tonight unless something happens."

"Okay, Riss. I'll make some stir-fry."

"Sounds great! We're out of soy sauce . . ."

Laura smiled as she paid for their drinks and followed the police sergeant out of the coffee house. "Don't worry; I'll get some more."

* * *

TBC . . . tell me what you think about Laura and Arissa. I like original characters every now and then. 


	5. Part of the Family

**Colors of the Wind**

**Title:** Colors of the Wind  
**Author:** kazeko  
**Show:** Power Rangers  
**Rating:** PG13  
**Couples:** Tommy/Kat (past), Kimberly/Steve (OC) (past), Tommy/Kimberly, Jason/Kat  
**Multipart:** yes  
**Series: **no  
**Chapters:** ?  
**Time:** about five years after MMPR 3 "I'm Dreaming of a White Ranger"; also, Kim wasn't involved in that Turbo Movie thing  
**Summary:** yet another random take on The Letter, this one without other planets  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own these people; you should know that by now, 'cause if I did, Kimberly would never have left and there would be no Letter and Tommy woulda' married the girl. So there.

* * *

Chapter 5: Part of the Family

* * *

"I'm not sure, Tommy. I don't know if they even want to see me after all this time."

"Tanya, Kat, Aisha, and Trini went to visit you, didn't they? They really miss you, Kimberly." Tommy fumbled for his key, unlocking the suite door and opening it so he brown-haired woman and her child could enter the apartment. The lights were off, making Tommy wonder where Rocky and Jason could be. Kimberly sensed his unease and she backed up, running into him as she attempted to retreat. "It looks like no one else is home. We can get the two of you moved in, then." He reached out and flipped on the lights.

"SURPRISE!!!!"

Kimberly jumped back as people exploded from their hiding places, streamers and confetti raining down. She swayed slightly, feeling overwhelmed, but she gained control of her body and covered her mouth with her hands, shocked and overjoyed. Jason, Billy, Zack, and Trini ambushed her, tears in even the men's eyes. Kimberly was pulled to the center of the room, Aisha, Adam, and Rocky pulling Kat and Tanya closer to greet the petite mother, too. Then they moved back so the non-Ranger guests could greet the woman and meet her daughter. Tommy pulled Jason and Rocky to one side as little Shana, easily as outgoing as her mother, joined Kimberly to meet her friends.

"You guys didn't have to do this. She was almost overwhelmed there for a second."

"I'm surprised she didn't faint," Jason admitted.

"She's too strong for that now. At least she's smiling."

* * *

"She looks just like you, Kimberly."

"Steve always said so. Kat, I don't know how to thank you guys for coming to help at the fire. I tried to save Shana myself, but I kind of forgot . . ."

"That you're not a Ranger anymore?" Kat placed a friendly hand on her cousin's shoulder, smiling down at the sleeping child. "For her, I would have run back into that building. When we realized why Tommy ran into the building, we just moved without thinking. It was like our Ranger days, all of us fighting as a team to save the people we love. It was empowering."

"Love? You can't mean me."

"I do, Kimberly. Aside from the fact that you're my cousin, you're family, Tommy still loves you and all of your friends love you."

"Tommy doesn't love me." Kimberly turned away, walking to the window and looking out over Angel Grove. "He did, once."

"He still does! Kimberly, he ran into a building engulfed in flame to save you. He never even thought about the consequences, he just ran. Why can't you see what we see?"

"But he dated you for a long time after I left."

"We also broke up a long time ago. We realized that he was just using me as a substitute for the woman he really loved. It wasn't fair to either of us. Besides, I found the man I was really looking for." Kat held out her hand, a modest diamond sparkling from her ring finger. Kimberly's eyes widened as she reached out to examine the stone.

"It's gorgeous! I didn't know you were engaged!"

"I didn't know you were married," Kat pointed out, her smile friendly. "But we were really far apart."

"Do I know him?"

"Since you were a little girl."

Kimberly raised an eyebrow, confusion changing to shock. "Jason," she realized. "Kat, that's wonderful! Congratulations! When is the wedding?"

"In a couple of months. We're going to Australia so he can meet my family before the ceremony. We might get married there since he plans to move back with me."

"You're going back to Australia?"

"I always planned to eventually, after I finished exploring the world and all. Jason told me that he can just as easily teach martial arts in Queensland as California, so the move won't bother him."

"I liked Australia, but it was never really home for me. Ann . . . it was Ann's home."

"And Shana?"

"I think she always knew that I wasn't from there. She was always talking about seeing my home someday."

"Is that why you came back, Kimberly?"

The gymnast shook her head, finding that she shared the same bond of friendship with Kat that she forged with Trini and Aisha so long ago. "I came back because I have nothing left there, now that Steve's dead. All I have is the land and the memories, but I can't see my future there. I don't think I'll ever be able to go back. I guess I'm just trying to find where I belong."

"You've always belonged here, Kim. Even after you left there was this vibe, this sense that some bright light had been extinguished, in some way the team was less powerful, more fractured. I'm really not explaining this very well, but they always looked for you. In battle and out, all of them seemed to need you. When your letter came . . ." Kat shook her head, turning away. "I'm sorry; you probably don't want to hear this."

"No, that's alright. I think, in a way, I need to hear this."

"Okay." Gathering her thoughts, Kat turned back to her predecessor, tears sparkling in her pale blue eyes. "Your letter broke Tommy's heart. I have never seen that man in so much pain. He turned to me because he needed someone to lean on, someone who wouldn't push him away. Eventually, we tried dating because he wanted to fill the void you left. But he wasn't the only one. Adam, poor Adam, is the one who read the letter, and he has never stopped blaming himself for at least part of his friend's pain. He can't really say it, but he thinks that he did something to drive you away, to betray the bond he shared with you and Tommy, or maybe he didn't do enough to keep you here. Billy just wouldn't believe that you wrote a letter like that; he was never as carefree after that, I think. He could never truly believe in anything again. We found Rocky later that day beating a punching bag into stuffing, alternating between wanting to kill whoever made you write that letter and needing to go see you, to know why you broke his friend's heart. Even Tanya, who never met you, couldn't believe that the woman Tommy loved would do something like that. At the time I was so obsessed with Tommy that for a moment I was relieved that you let him go, but later I cried for you, for the pain you must have been in to break up with him. I wanted to help him heal so badly. After you vanished, I would imagine you coming back and making him happy again. When I found out that you married Steve, it felt like I had a second chance to make everything better. You can't leave Kimberly because we really do need you."

Kimberly was shaking from the power of Kat's words, tears streaking her cheek, unable to find anything to say. Kat stepped forward and embraced the brunette, holding her while she cried, all of the pain and loneliness and the secrets she had to keep for the last five years pouring out of her in her silent sobs. They stood like that for a long time, until Kimberly regained her composure and pulled away, wiping the last tears off her cheeks. "Thank you," she whispered. "I'm so sorry . . . I didn't . . . it was the only thing I could think of and I cried for so long . . . I had to vanish, to create Ann and marry Steve so that the pain would go away. I don't know if I can ever fix it."

"Love really can heal all wounds, if you try, Kimberly. Why did you write that letter? Was it because of Steve?"

"It was because of Shana," she whispered. "She changed my life and I couldn't ever come back. So I thought that I should . . ." She trailed off, unable to say anything else, and Kat smiled, opening the door and holding out her hand.

"It's okay. When you're ready, we'll be here. Come back out to your party, Kim."

* * *

Laura groaned and sat back, closing her eyes for a moment. She was so tired of looking at blood samples! "Laura? Laura, are you here?"

"Yeah, Justin. What is it?"

The youngest nurse, Justin Mulligan, poked his red head into the lab. "I have the results you wanted. Are you sure these samples come from human blood?"

"Positive; why?"

"The reading are very odd. There are unusually high levels of antibodies and white blood cells. I would imagine that the specimen this blood came from would be unable to get a disease."

"Strange. What antibodies are present?" Laura took the slides and stared at them under the microscope, noting many irregularities.

"Every antibody that I've ever seen is in there somewhere. I don't even recognize most of them. I imagine that this person is immune to everything except the common cold. We also did some tests on the other DNA samples, UV tests, and we couldn't mutate the DNA. We couldn't kill any of the cells and we couldn't even give this person cancer."

That caught Laura's attention. "What?"

"We cultured some of the cells and introduced cancerous ones. Less than five hours later when we checked again, they were gone."

"The normal cells? Did the cancer wipe them out?"

"No. The normal cells eradicated the cancerous ones. The other three cultures from the different specimens did the exact same thing."

"Are you saying that these people hold the cure for everything from the flu to cancer?"

"They just might. But where would they get such immunity?"

"Where, indeed?" _I can't wait to tell Arissa! _

* * *

TBC


	6. Little Eagle

**Colors of the Wind**

**Title:** Colors of the Wind  
**Author:** kazeko  
**Show:** Power Rangers  
**Rating:** PG13  
**Couples:** Tommy/Kat (past), Kimberly/Steve (OC) (past), Tommy/Kimberly, Jason/Kat  
**Multipart:** yes  
**Series: **no  
**Chapters:** ?  
**Time:** about five years after MMPR 3 "I'm Dreaming of a White Ranger"; also, Kim wasn't involved in that Turbo Movie thing  
**Summary:** yet another random take on The Letter, this one without other planets  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own these people; you should know that by now, 'cause if I did, Kimberly would never have left and there would be no Letter and Tommy woulda' married the girl. So there.

* * *

Chapter 6: Little Eagle

* * *

Arissa sipped her coffee as she scribbled on the pictures scattered across her desk, typing on her computer as she analyzed them. Thanks to the sophistication of the equipment available to the Angle Grove police force, she was able to take random photos of the Power Rangers from different times and angles to determine the height of each of the Rangers, the change in the teams fairly obvious. She was also able to make notes on build from the pictures, using short video and audio clips collected by the town over the years to note common moves used by the heroes and even voice types. She could tell that the first Pink Ranger left and was replaced just from the drastic change in height and body shape, the same applying to the first and second Yellow Rangers. The third Yellow Ranger was substantially taller than the second, about the same as the first. There even seemed to be a change in Yellow Rangers when they were the Turbo Rangers. 

The changes in the Red Ranger was just as easy to detect, but the change was more subtle. All of the Red Rangers were tall, but the change in body structure was enough for her to identify five different men holding the red powers. There were also four obvious Blue Rangers, ending with the Rangers that traveled to space and had only returned once in a while. The Green Rangers were not so easy. It was obvious just from height that the first Green Ranger that attacked the town in the early days of the Rangers and later joined the team until slowly disappearing was not the same as the Green Zeo Ranger. But she couldn't tell just from physical appearance if the second Green Ranger lasted until they went into space. From her observations of the other Rangers, it seemed that the Green Ranger probably changed during the Turbo Powers. She encountered the same problem with the Black Ranger, easily detecting the change in the early years, wondering if the same Black Ranger returned after the Zeo Powers. Again, she doubted it.

There was also a short period of time when a completely different team of Rangers protected Angel Grove, but they only visited for a short period and then left, so she ignored them. That only left the White Ranger from the early years and the Gold Ranger who appeared in the Zeo time period. Sighing, Arissa leaned back and stared at her notes. She knew somehow, deep inside, that only certain people could be Power Rangers, so how could there have possibly been more than twenty Rangers in six years? It just didn't seem very likely. And they had to live in Angel Grove to always protect that town. Unless . . . unless some of them wore different colors. Bolting out of her seat, Arissa gathered the homemade videos and began to watch them, pad in hand, trying to determine which Rangers could have been the same person.

* * *

"Most of the former Rangers have accepted my invitation. Here's the list." 

Kimberly took the paper and read the names, recognizing many of them but not all. She noticed colored symbols beside the names, some names having two or three different ones. Tommy's name had four. "What are the symbols for, Jase?"

"Team and color. The moon is for the first set of powers, basically everything pre-Zeo. The plus sign is Zeo, the squiggly line is Turbo, and the star is Space. So the pink moon beside Kat's name represents her time as the Pink Ninja Ranger."

"Ok. I don't know a lot of these people."

"Okay. When Tommy and the others gave up their Turbo Powers, Justin stayed on since he was still pretty young, and a new group took over. T.J. became the Red Ranger, Carlos the green, Cassie the pink, and Ashley yellow. Then Justin left, T.J. became the Blue Ranger, Carlos became the Black Ranger, and Andros from KO-35 became the Red Ranger. They were the last group, since Zordon died. Even Andros has agreed to come with his sister, Karone."

"She was evil, too, wasn't she?"

"A lot of us have been evil."

"And most of us have done some things we regret." Kimberly turned away, wiping the faint tears off her cheeks, looking out into the dojo proper. She and Jason were in his office while Tommy and Rocky led their classes through their lessons. Little Shana sat on the sidelines, dark eyes constantly locked on Tommy, memorizing his moves as she had been doing all week. Kimberly had offered her something else to do, but the child didn't want to do anything but watch Tommy.

"You have nothing to regret, Kim. Your life has been a success. You've done more in twenty-three years than most people can do in a hundred. What do you have to regret?"

"I wish I never left, Jase. I wish I never got back on that balance beam."

"Kim, you can't mean that. You're a gold medalist, one of the best gymnasts ever. You have a beautiful daughter, you traveled the world, and you had a wonderful marriage. Do you miss your husband?"

"No," she whispered, head hung. "I don't. I should, but I don't. I married him, I shared his bed for five years, I know he loved me, but I . . . he's just a fond memory. I don't miss him at all. What's wrong with me, Jason?"

Jason wrapped his arms around Kim's small waist and pulled her close. "It's alright not to love someone, Kimberly. You can only have one true soulmate. It's fine if it wasn't Steve; maybe you just haven't met him yet."

"Maybe I have," she whispered, glancing at her daughter and former boyfriend. "But maybe I just let him slip away. I messed up, Jason, and I don't know how to tell anybody what really happened."

"Maybe you should talk to Trini or Aisha."

"They won't understand."

"Kat?"

"Maybe . . . I'm so glad you two found each other, Jason." Kimberly turned away from her friend as a commotion in Tommy's class caught her attention. Apparently the former White Ranger had paired the children in his beginner class up to practice some of their moves and one of the little boys didn't have a partner. Shana was talking quietly with the teacher, her little brown eyes serious, and Tommy shrugged. Shana faced off against the boy, bowing as they moved into fighting stances. Kimberly jerked out of Jason's arms and dashed for the mats, knowing that she would never make it in time.

Shana ducked the boy's weak blow like an expert, her speed and agility a match for her mother's any day. Gracefully she flowed through the moves of a very complicated kata she could only have learned from watching Tommy, narrowly missing the boy with each motion. He moved back, trying to escape, but a simple flip from her put him back in range. Tommy, shocked, moved forward to separate the pair as Shana's moves left sparks in the air, a strange presence seeming to engulf her. Kimberly finally reached her daughter and scooped her into her arms, avoiding the child's last move with ease. She stared at Tommy, her eyes full of apology as she dashed off. Tommy glanced at Jason and followed, leaving the first Red Ranger to finish the class. He knew where Kimberly would go.

Outside the dojo, having glanced in as she headed for work, the police chief pondered the child as she resumed her trek.

* * *

"Kimberly! Wait!" 

"I don't want to talk to you, Tommy." Kimberly placed Shana on the ground and told her to go pick some flowers. The brunette stopped by the pond's edge and stared out across the water, wishing that he would just go away.

"I'm not leaving. What was that? How can she have power?"

"You know, the one thing we never asked Zordon was for a list of side-effects of the Power. It changed us in ways we still don't know about and can't understand. When I was younger, before the Rangers, I used to get sick pretty easily. But I only remember getting sick once while I was a Power Ranger and twice in five years since then. Does that seem normal? And what about our incredible healing speed? We shocked the nurse and the doctors, you know."

"It's not a bad side-effect, Kim."

"No, but what about for Shana? She can get a scrape and have it heal within an hour; she hasn't been sick once in her life; she has skills and reflexes no five-year-old should possess; and she knows things, Tommy, things she shouldn't know. Why didn't Zordon warn us about having children?"

"There's nothing wrong with her, Kimberly."

"Yes there is!" Kimberly whirled around, fists clenched, tears in her bright eyes. "She can't be around normal children because that power always manifests itself! Did you see that kata? Tommy, she watched you once and knew it by heart, no problems! She never has to practice them and she does them perfectly. That's not normal. Power Rangers were never meant to have children. I wish I'd had that stupid abortion."

"Kimberly!" Tommy stared at the woman, shocked, knowing that Kimberly was carrying more baggage than she could admit to. "You can't mean that. What about Steve? He loved Shana, didn't he? Did he want you to have an abortion?"

"I didn't tell him until I was sure that I was keeping her."

"Why . . . I don't understand, Kim. Did you hate her father that much?"

"No," she whispered, crossing her arms over her chest. "I loved him that much." Something in Kimberly's tone froze Tommy as both turned to glance at Shana. She was running through the flowers, arms outspread as she pretended to be the eagle on her necklace. Kimberly smiled a little, and she shook her head. "No, I'm glad I kept her. No matter what secrets we have to hide, even if her life isn't normal, I'm glad that I didn't have the abortion. I think it was her father that held me back."

"It . . . Shana's father . . . it wasn't Steve, was it?" Kimberly slowly shook her head, a slight tinge of fear in her brown eyes. "Who . . . who was it?" Kimberly pulled back, trying desperately to find her Ann persona, but Tommy's gentle arms caught her. He pulled her arms away from her chest and embraced her, lending the small woman strength. "Tell me who Shana's father is. I think I deserve to know who you dumped me for, Kimberly. Who was the other man?"

"Steve was," she whispered, "but he wasn't her father. He thought he was, and I married him to protect her, but I never loved him. I couldn't. She knows who her real father is, and she's always known. Steve never figured it out." Kimberly took a deep breath and rested her head on Tommy's chest, closing her eyes, her voice so quiet that Tommy felt the vibrations more than heard her. "Do you . . . do you remember that Christmas and our little private party in your room that involved a bottle of wine your parents had lying around?" Tommy nodded, smiling fondly. "Remember how I said the doctor was trying me on a new birth control pill and that I was between them at the time?"

"Sure I remember."

"Oh, Tommy! Every single one of those sex-ed classes told us to use condoms! Why didn't we listen?!!"

Tommy turned white, barely able to support himself. "Oh god . . . you don't mean . . . Kimberly, she can't be . . ."

"She is," Kimberly whispered, pulling away, feeling strangely relieved now that her biggest secret was revealed. "Shana is your daughter." She turned away, ready for the worst, as she plunged forward with her explanation. "I knew that I should be only a few days from my period, but I thought it was closer to a week. When I was two weeks late, I made an appointment with my gynecologist. Of course the first thing she asked was if I had sex in the past month, and I told her that I had. The first test was inconclusive, so she had me come back a week later. By that time it had been a month and I had missed an entire cycle. I hadn't been feeling so good and I was bloated and my morning sickness was atrocious. When she told me I was pregnant I fainted. I was so happy, Tommy; I wanted more than anything to come home to you and live with you forever and have your children and be your wife. I even came back to tell you, but I saw the team in the Youth Center before I got a chance to go to your house. I stopped to greet them when you came in and I saw how Kat greeted you, how the team kind of surrounded you. At that moment I realized that I couldn't tell you, that I had to let you go."

"Kimberly, why? I'm her _father_; I deserved to know!"

"You were also a Power Ranger, the leader of the team, protector of Earth. How could I come to you and give you two people to protect above everyone else? You would have sacrificed the world for us, and I couldn't let you. Besides, none of the new enemies even knew who I was, that you once had a girlfriend named Kimberly Hart, or that you had once almost served Lord Zedd to save her. If I had come back, even for a little while, they would have known and they could have used me to get to you. Worse, they would have used Shana or even killed her. I had to protect her, Tommy. I saw how much Kat was smitten with you; I knew that she would be there for you. So I left without saying a thing to anyone. I'll admit that I was feeling pretty miserable and I ended up in my room, crying. Steve was one of my closest friends; he knew all about you and he was always there for me when I needed it. When he saw how upset I was all he wanted to do was make me feel better. He ended up kissing me—he didn't mean to, but that's what happened—and I let it go much further than it should of. We had sex, no protection, no worries, and I realized that he could protect you and me from each other. If I told you that there was someone else, you would stay away and stay safe."

"Kimberly . . . I had no idea . . ."

"Let me finish," she whispered. "I wrote you that letter, sending it to the Youth Center so everyone would know, so you couldn't hide what happened, so you wouldn't be tempted to come to Florida, so that the others would be there for you and make it easier. I know that you and Kat got together, just like I planned. About two weeks after I had sex with Steve, I told him that I was pregnant. I never said that she was his, but he assumed that she had to be, so he offered to marry me and take me back to Australia with him after the Games. He was so sweet, so kind, so I accepted. His family paid for everything, though my mother insisted on buying my dress, and we got married before my pregnancy was too obvious. I never planned on being eighteen and pregnant, but Shana was so small that the birth was easy. Steve always wanted me to come back and see my friends, but I knew that I would see you. Shana looks just like you, Tommy, and I know Steve could see that she looked nothing like him. He never asked."

"You've carried this secret for five years? Kimberly . . . you know I would have been there for you, no matter what?"

Kimberly faced Tommy again, head still hung, hearing only support and love in his voice. There was none of the anger and bitterness she expected, none of the accusation and bitterness. "I know."

"And so would we." Kimberly did look up at that, finding all of her friends standing behind Tommy, love and support the only emotion in their eyes. Kat stepped forward, blue eyes suspiciously moist, and held out her arms. "After all, Power Rangers are always there for each other. You can't get rid of us, mate."

Kimberly took a step forward, having lost control of her own body as she jumped into Kat's arms, smiling as the other ex-Rangers joined the group hug, their energy amusing the other park visitors. Tommy stepped back, watching as his friends accepted Kimberly and her past without reserve or care, feeling a tiny hand slip into his. "I wondered if she would ever tell you."

"I never imagined she would leave me because I got her pregnant. We should have been more careful."

Shana tugged on Tommy's hand and pulled him down to her level, neither noticing that the group silenced. Her intense brown eyes bored into his, gold flecks sparkling in the light. "What about me? Would I be here if you were careful?"

Tommy smiled as he picked Shana up, kissing her forehead. "Of course you would," he whispered. "Your mother and I planned on having children. You just wouldn't be so old now and I would have been there to see you grow up. Nothing we did was wrong, we just did it a little too early. Trust me, Shana; you would be here no matter what."

"Would she be, Tommy? Would she, really?"

Tommy faced Kimberly, reaching out and cupping her cheek in his hand, shifting Shana slightly. "She would." Kimberly smiled, some of her old light returning to her eyes as Tommy's tone conveyed more than his simple words ever could. Silently, she took her daughter and let the group envelop her again, the young men and women heading for the dojo for a much-deserved drink. Kimberly was smiling, no more doubt and fear weighing her down, a spring in her step she hadn't known in five years. Tommy gently slipped an arm around her waist like he used to do when they were young and dating and so much in love, and she smiled, saying nothing.

The same woman who had peeked into the dojo on the way to work was standing beside a nearby tree waiting for two of her lieutenants who had radioed her before she reached the station. She watched the group leave in such high spirits, memories from years earlier teasing the edge of her mind. She knew them, knew that walk and that pose, that playful jump, the fighting stances she had witnessed from the dojo. But those thoughts led her to the most impossible conclusion ever. They just couldn't be . . . they were only a bunch of kids.

* * *

TBC . . . fanfiction dot net's little update is the reason it took me so long . . . enjoy 


	7. Falcon and Crane

**Colors of the Wind**

**Title:** Colors of the Wind  
**Author:** kazeko  
**Show:** Power Rangers  
**Rating:** PG13  
**Couples:** Tommy/Kat (past), Kimberly/Steve (OC) (past), Tommy/Kimberly, Jason/Kat  
**Multipart:** yes  
**Series: **no  
**Chapters:** ?  
**Time:** about five years after MMPR 3 "I'm Dreaming of a White Ranger"; also, Kim wasn't involved in that Turbo Movie thing  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own these people; you should know that by now, 'cause if I did, Kimberly would never have left and there would be no Letter and Tommy woulda' married the girl. So there.

* * *

Chapter 7: Falcon and Crane

* * *

"No, they weren't the same. Look at this." Arissa pushed the papers to Laura's side of the table. "The Power Rangers who revealed themselves, the last team, none of them were from any earlier than Turbo Rangers, and only some of them were even Turbo. I think that the Blue Space Ranger was the second Red Turbo Ranger, the Black Turbo Ranger was the second green Turbo Ranger, the Pink Space Ranger was the second Pink Turbo Ranger, and the Yellow Space Ranger was the second Yellow Turbo Ranger. But none of them were from the first Turbo Team, and certainly not from any earlier." 

Laura shook her head. "I don't know why you're so determined to find out who the Power Rangers were. That's all over now."

"It's a mystery lefty unsolved for too long. From the pictures and videos I have been studying, I have determined that there were eighteen Power Rangers, including the Red and Silver Space Rangers and the Gold Ranger who fought with them for a while. It looks like the Green Ranger from the early days lost or gave up his green powers and returned as the White Ranger later, continuing on to become the White Ninja Ranger and the Red Zeo and first Red Turbo Ranger. Here's my list."

"What's this list of names here at the bottom? Tommy Oliver, Kimberly Ann Hart Hilliard, Kat Hilliard, Billy Cranston . . . these were the people at the fire."

"Not just the fire, Laura, but everywhere. If you can find one, the others are not far away. They're a team. At one time or another, they formed seven different teams."

"The Power Rangers," Laura breathed, the papers falling from her hand. "Riss . . . you can't be serious! They were just kids back then—fifteen, sixteen, seventeen years old! How could they possibly have saved the world so many times?"

"If called into action, anyone can be a hero. Besides, that's the only explanation for their strange immunities, the problems you had matching their blood types, their incredible healing abilities, and the powers that little girl, Shana Hilliard, has. They have to be the Power Rangers. There are many instances of one or more of these teens going to school with minor injuries, bruises, sprained wrists or ankles, fractured bones . . . but nothing serious. They seemed fine a day or so later. Considering all of the monsters the Power Rangers fought, they're lucky that they all made it to school every day."

Laura shook her head, pushing the pile of papers back to Arissa's side of the table. "Riss, you know I love you, but I think you're obsessed. You're the police chief of Angel Grove; you shouldn't be chasing the Power Rangers. Let it drop, okay? If they wanted the world to know who they are, they would have revealed their own identities. They have lived in secrecy for so long; let them be."

Arissa shook her head. "Maybe I will, Laura. But I'm so close . . ."

"Riss, I can guarantee that you don't want to disturb them. Let them be."

* * *

Kimberly stared into her cup, watching the tiny ripples created by her breath dance across the surface of the cooling coffee. She briefly considered getting a snack, but her muscles protested any movement. Sighing, she returned to her contemplation. 

"What are you thinking about, Kim?"

"You." Kimberly gestured for Tommy to join her at the table in the small kitchen. "I was wondering what would have happened if I had come to you five years ago."

"Quite possibly, we'd all be dead." Kimberly looked up sharply, and Tommy shrugged. "You were right, Beautiful. We all made sacrifices to save the world, yours was just the biggest. You chose to protect the world and your daughter; your heart was the casualty. It doesn't matter what happened to me, just that you and Shana were safe in Australia."

"But still, Tommy. Kat told me what happened when you got my letter. I should have sent it to your house or called you or something. I'm so sorry."

Tommy reached across the small table and cupped Kimberly's chin in his hand. "Shh," he whispered. "Years ago, when we were in battle or one of us was on pain, we could . . . almost . . . hear each other's thoughts, feel each other's emotions. Quiet your thoughts, open your mind, and listen."

Kimberly nodded, her doe eyes fluttering closed as she blocked out everything—the warmth from her cooling coffee, the whispery night sounds of a slumbering city, the creaking in the room next door, the whine of the refrigerator, the hardness of the chair she was using—and let her thoughts focus on the warmth of Tommy's hand. She let her own thoughts vanish, feeling a warm, calm sensation fill her mind, carrying her away from her pain and worries and despair. She was floating, free, wings of the palest pink carrying her on the winds of time as Tommy carried her back to one memory, one insignificant second, of his life. She settled to a resting stop as Angel Grove Park came into focus, the green grass more vibrant than its dull fall color. Spring flowers eagerly reached for the sun, whispering as a tall man with long mahogany hair knelt in the grass, a necklace in his hand, a pink quartz figure on the end. The image wavered as Kimberly realized that he was holding the necklace she had found less than a month ago.

A white-morph plains Peregrine Falcon landed in the grass beside Tommy, hissing his agreement as a tiny fire sprung to life inside a circle of white stones. Tommy held his hands over the fire, dark eyes closed, whispering what sounded like an ancient Native American chant. The bird fluffed its feathers as Tommy opened his eyes, smiling. "Kimberly, Beautiful, wherever you are, please know that I love you and that I'll always love you. If you come back, I won't try to win your heart, take you away from the life you have chosen, but I will never hesitate to be your friend. You healed my heart when my pain was the greatest, you supported me when I lost my powers, and I am so sorry that I let my job keep me from seeing the pain and suffering you went through when you lost your powers. Please understand that you never lost me, you never lost us. If you ever find what you went looking for and return to Angel Grove, we love you and we will be here for you. Please try to come back eventually. Fly home, little Crane, my beautiful pink angel. Good luck." Tommy opened his hands and tossed the charm into the air, watching as the Falcon by his side leapt into flight and caught it in his sharp talons, taking the necklace far, far away.

Kimberly's eyes shot open, and she stared at Tommy, shocked. "You sent me that necklace. How did the falcon know where I was?"

Tommy shrugged. "I have no idea. He just came and took the necklace."

"You told me to fly home, to come back some day. Did you mean it?"

Tommy leaned over and kissed Kimberly's forehead. "Of course I did. I always meant to make a home with you someday. I just wanted you to see that I realized long ago what happened, what I did to make you leave, and I let you go. It's up to you what happens next, Beautiful. There's no more Zedd, no more monsters attacking the Earth, no more Power Rangers. You have nothing left to be afraid of."

"I'm not afraid," she whispered, feeling Tommy's love and support wash over her, certain for the first time in her life of her choice. "I want to stay in Angel Grove forever, with you as Shana's father. Years ago, you asked me if I would consider marrying you one day. Now I ask you the same thing." Kimberly dug through her pockets, pulling out the other necklace she had found in her jewelry box that day. A beautifully detailed white falcon hung from the silver chain, and she held it out, smiling. "Will you marry me, Tommy Oliver?"

Stunned, Tommy reached out and touched the bird. "I'd love to," he whispered.

Cheers from nine men and women struggling to see into the kitchen stunned the pair, and Kimberly blushed a darker shade of pink than she had ever worn as a Power Ranger. Tommy laughed and pulled Kimberly to her feet, slipping the necklace on. The group of ex-Rangers surged forward, congratulating the pair. "It took you long enough," Zack pointed out for the benefit of the entire group. "I still remember when Tommy was nervous about asking you out for the first time. Now look at you."

"The Falcon and the Crane," Shana whispered, having appeared in the doorway without anyone noticing. "They soared alone, silently screaming, knowing they were torn in half, but now they only fly together, now they are no longer single, there is no more pain, they will heal and create a new life, a better life, together."

Tommy shook his head as he stepped forward and picked the sleepy girl up. "Do you always talk like that?"

"Since she was little," Kimberly grinned, joining her boyfriend and daughter. "I think she was trying to get me to come home."

"I'm glad it worked," Tommy whispered, leaning down and kissing the small woman briefly. "But you really need to go back to bed, Shana. You don't want to be grouchy in the morning."

"What are we doing in the morning, Daddy?"

She sounded so young, so innocent, and Tommy froze at the last word. Daddy. She really was his daughter, the child he always wanted to have with Kimberly, his family. "I'm going to take you and your Mommy shopping," he whispered, his voice shaking almost as much as his hands as he tried to gain control of his emotions. "We're having a party in a few days for all of the ex-Power Rangers and our friends and allies, and I want both of you to look nice."

"That sounds nice. Okay, Daddy, I'm ready to go back to bed." Tommy nodded as he headed for the room he had given to Kimberly and Shana. Rocky caught his arm, smiling at the little child.

"Shana, how would you like to sleep in Uncle Rocky's room tonight? I think your mother and father might want to catch up tonight." Shana nodded and held out her little arms, letting Tommy transfer her to Rocky's arms. The former Red Ranger glanced up at Jason and Kat, tilting his head towards his room. "Can you two come and help me turn that small couch in my room into a little bed?" The pair nodded and followed him out, the other ex-Rangers glancing at each other. Billy pointed at the door, silently leading Aisha, Trini, Tanya, Adam, and Zack out of the apartment and back to their own apartments down the street. Tommy held out his arm and smiled at the only person left in the room.

Kimberly blushed and took Tommy's arm, nodding toward her room. "I suppose we should go talk, like Rocky suggested." She paused at the doorway, holding out her hand. "Welcome to my life, Tommy Oliver."

"It's good to be back, Kimberly Ann Hart Hilliard."

* * *

TBC 


	8. Revelations

**Colors of the Wind**

**Title:** Colors of the Wind  
**Author:** kazeko  
**Show:** Power Rangers  
**Rating:** PG13  
**Couples:** Tommy/Kat (past), Kimberly/Steve (OC) (past), Tommy/Kimberly, Jason/Kat  
**Multipart:** yes  
**Series: **no  
**Chapters:** ?  
**Time:** about five years after MMPR 3 "I'm Dreaming of a White Ranger"; also, Kim wasn't involved in that Turbo Movie thing  
**Summary:** yet another random take on The Letter, this one without other planets  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own these people; you should know that by now, 'cause if I did, Kimberly would never have left and there would be no Letter and Tommy woulda' married the girl. So there.

* * *

Chapter 8: Revelations

* * *

For the first time in years, Kimberly's dreams took her back to her days as a Power Ranger, to their battles, defeating the greatest evils, thwarting Rita and Zedd's plans, saving her friends and her family from certain death. She dreamed of the karate tournament where she first saw Tommy, of the day they saved him from Rita's influence, of the day he became the White Ranger . . . 

She let herself wake slowly, the warmth and love in Tommy's arms safe and secure. She sat up slowly, slipping away from her sleeping fiancé as she found a robe to slip into and walked to the window. Outside, a brilliant sun warmed a familiar landscape, and she knew for the first time in more than five years that she was finally home. Where she belonged. Outside, a white falcon soared above the trees, hunting for his morning meal, landing on a nearby tree as he paused his search. As Kimberly watched, the bird turned his head, eyes sparkling in the sun. _The Falcon soars alone no longer_, it seemed to whisper. Kimberly nodded, and the bird raised his pale wings. _And the Crane . . . the Crane has finally come home._

As he closed his wings, the shadow of a larger bird enveloped him, but the Falcon seemed to welcome the visitor, beak open in a greeting. He took to the sky as the shadow resolved itself into a crane, white feathers tinted pink, and they vanished together, white and pink mingling with the winds, the sun finding the slightest gold highlights as the pair vanished, one at last.

"I was wondering when they would show up."

"You knew about them? I saw them in Australia."

Tommy wrapped his arms around Kimberly's waist and smiled. "That's the Falcon spirit that took your necklace."

"That's the Crane from my dream of Jason, the one that told me I was needed here. I think they knew us better than we do." Kimberly turned around in Tommy's arm, a smile lighting her face. "I love you, Tommy Oliver."

"I love you, too, Kimberly Ann Hart Hilliard," Tommy smiled. "I don't think I told you that enough before. Now that I think of it, I never said 'I love you' the last time we spoke before the letter. I'm sorry, Kim."

"It's fine," she purred, leaning against her fiancé. "I know you meant to. Shall we go see if the others are up? I hear that there's this reunion of Power Rangers soon that needs to be planned, and I know you want it to be perfect."

"I was hoping you'd ask," Tommy grinned, giving Kimberly the sudden feeling that she had just volunteered for a very unpleasant duty. "But first, I promised our daughter that I would take you shopping."

"Oh! Yay!"

* * *

"Yes, Chief?" 

"Lieutenant Farkas Bulkemeier, I need you to do me a favor." The large man, father of two and very happily married, tilted his head.

"What favor, Chief?"

Arissa Sparrow handed Bulk a paper, an address typed across the bottom. "I need you to follow the movements of these people and keep an eye on the dojo owned by Tommy Oliver, Jason Lee Scott, and Rocky DeSantos. The address is at the bottom."

Bulk, Arissa's most trusted and most efficient officer—a far cry from his Junior Police days, according to Lieutenant Stone—shook his head. "Why these people? I know them all; they're my friends and would never do something illegal." One name on the list caught his attention—Ann Hilliard. He remembered something about a woman with that name being injured in that hotel fire, though he had no idea who she was.

"Well, Bulk, I am currently trying to discover the true identities of the Power Rangers and I think these people can help."

Bulk began to laugh, shaking his head in wonder. "I thought that fetish died years ago. We know who the Power Rangers were—they showed themselves, remember?"

"We know who the last Power Rangers were, true, but there were at least seven teams and eighteen different men and women carrying the power. I want to know who the other ones were."

"No, you don't," Bulk whispered. "They've kept their secret for eight or nine years, since the first attack on Angel Grove, and they must have a really good reason for doing so. Skull and I used to search for their identities all the time, but we finally realized that we had no right to know. They risked their own lives again and again to protect us, and we weren't all grateful all the time. They did it because they loved us, and they deserve our love and gratitude in return. We shouldn't pry into their lives, we shouldn't ask them questions they don't want to answer. If they wanted us to know the identities of the Power Rangers, they would have told us long ago. Let the legend of the Power Rangers rest in peace, and let the eighteen people who carried that burden for so long live the lives they fought for so desperately. I won't help you ruin their lives."

"Bulk!" Her call stopped him as the man turned to leave, and the captain smiled at his impassioned speech. "You know who they are, don't you? All of them?"

"Skull and I figured it out long ago but swore each other to secrecy. We won't tell you or anybody else, no matter what."

"The Power Rangers are lucky to have a friend like you. Very well, I will do this on my own. Thank you for being honest about your feelings, Bulk."

"Captain, just leave them alone."

* * *

Kimberly grinned as she tied the last ribbon, pink. There was a ribbon for every color ever worn by a Power Ranger strung across the ceiling, matching balloons tied to tables and chairs. Tommy helped her down from the ladder as Shana carried a stack of Power Rangers paper plates to "Uncle Rocky" as she called him. They had been amazed at the amount of Power Rangers paraphernalia still available in Angel Grove after all that time, including plastic figurines of all of the teams, the old ones becoming more numerous as the big Power Rangers Celebration approached. Tommy's students were spreading table cloths and moving chairs, washing windows and sweeping floors in preparation for the big event. Aisha, Trini, Tanya, and Kat were in the corner sorting invitation responses as people from all over the country flocked to Angel Grove for the big event. The President herself was coming the morning of, and the media would beat her by two or three days. Even newspapers and networks that operated primarily on the east coast were sending teams, and they were welcome during the speeches but not during the reception in the dojo. The ex-Rangers had voted that it would be easier if they kept media presence to a minimum. They were still trying to decide who would be in costume to deliver the speeches. Tommy, naturally, and all of the Space Rangers had agreed to find their old morphers so Billy could recharge them enough for one last morph, but no one else had decided if they would participate. 

Billy and Jason walked up with a clipboard, the genius smiling. "We finally figured this out. Kim, you, Jase, Trini, Zack, and I will represent the first team; Rocky, Aisha, Kat, Adam, and Justin will be Turbo; Andros and the rest of the Space Rangers will be the Space Rangers, and Tommy can be White. Rocky will be playing the part of the Red Turbo Ranger for anyone who was wondering."

"I figured," Kim murmured.

"Why the White Ranger?"

"Because, Bro, you were the White Ranger for so long that it almost seemed like you had been there from the beginning. You were there for a long time as the Green Ranger, but I think you were more popular White. There's a lot of White Ranger action figures, in any case, and only a few of the Green Dragon Ranger."

Tommy raised an eyebrow at Jason's explanation, and his fiancée chuckled. "I guess you're White, Handsome. Billy, why no Zeo Rangers?"

"I can't do anything with the Zeo Crystal. I've got the rest figured out. Oh, and the cakes are done. Zack and Adam went to pick them up. The Zeo Rangers do have a cake, in any case."

"This party's going to be insane."

"I couldn't agree more, Kimberly," Jason laughed. "Back to writing my speech, I suppose. Don't forget to work on yours."

"We won't," Kimberly promised as the pair left. "It'll be weird looking out through that helmet again. I thought that the Power Ranger part of my life was over for good."

"Once a Ranger, always a Ranger, Beautiful. Let me go help Shana carry those cups." As he dashed over to the girl's side, Kimberly smiled, amazed at how quickly he had adapted to the father role with their daughter. And Shana loved him so much. She was glad that she had finally come home.

"Kimberly!"

The brunette turned at her name, shocked to see Bulk and Skull standing in the doorway, both dressed in police blues, hats in their hands. She smiled at the two who had become her friends. "Hi Bulk, Skull. How have you been?"

"We didn't know you had come back to Angel Grove!"

"It was pretty sudden."

Bulk reached out and embraced the tiny gymnast, stepping back to let Skull hug her, too. "We missed you, Kimberly," Skull sniffed.

"I missed you guys, too. What bring you here?"

Bulk glanced over Kimberly's shoulder at Tommy and the girl in his arms. "We came to talk to Tommy about something, but I guess you need to hear it, too. Is she your daughter?"

"Yeah. Shana. Tommy, Bulk and Skull want to talk to us."

Tommy joined the trio at the door, moving into the side office to be a little more private. "What is it, Bulk?"

"It's just that Captain Sparrow has been researching the Power Rangers recently and she thinks she knows who they are. I thought we should warn you before she confronts the ex-Rangers."

Tommy and Kimberly exchanged a shocked glance, their conversation from the hospital rushing back into their minds. "Why are you telling us, Bulk?"

"We know, Tommy. Skull and I finally discovered the identities of the Power Rangers but we respect you guys enough and are grateful for you risking your lives for so long that we made a pact that we would never tell. The only thing we ever wanted to do was to thank you guys."

"You actually figured it out? After all those years of following us? What finally gave us away, Bulk?"

He smiled. "Well, it was a number of things. We never really thought of any of them as strange until the Space Rangers revealed their identities, but we knew that they had not been the originals. That was when we remembered that we had never seen some of you when the Power Rangers were around, and you traveled in a group all of the time. When someone would leave, another would join. It seemed like the Power Rangers changed every now and then, but what really convinced us was when we remembered the day you left, Kimberly. That was the last day we saw the little Pink Ranger. She was replaced by one a lot taller, and we realized that it had to have been Kat. The rest of you just fell into place. I guess we should have seen that the White Ranger seemed to know all of your moves, Tommy, but I think there was a part of us even back then that realized that no one really needed to know the identities of the Power Rangers. It wouldn't make us popular or famous, it would only make your job harder. So we never told anyone."

"Thank you," Kimberly whispered. "Thank you both." She leaned forward and kissed each of them one the cheek, letting Tommy wrap his arm around her waist. "Who did you say was trying to discover our identities?"

"The Police Chief, Arissa Falcon," Skull supplied. "We can tell you where she lives if you want to go talk to her."

"I think we need to."

* * *

TBC . .. thanks to everyone who reviewed! I'm sorry it took me so long to post again, but college is taking up all of my time. I'll try to post something else later today. 


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